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Musa Mandaza

Ricky Zililo, Senior Sports Reporter
ZIFA Southern Region has challenged Division One clubs to play their role in developing talent by registering at least five juniors in their 2018 squads.

Musa Mandaza, Zifa Southern Region chairman, said they expect each club to register a minimum of five players under the age of 20 out of their 30-member provisional squads.

The teams have up to March 14 to submit their provisional squad, with the league set to kick-off on April 7.

Mandaza said they want to move away from the notion that Division One is a retirement league where old players that fail to make the grade in the Premiership come to finish off their careers.

“The juniors’ quota has always been there, but some clubs were ignoring it. We have challenged the teams to register at least five Under-20 players in their squads and play a role in developing talent for the country. The reason why we’re encouraging these sides to register juniors is that most of them don’t have junior teams, which is a worrying factor. Juniors are the future of the game and that is why we’re pushing teams to play their part in terms of developing talent,” said Mandaza.

“All the teams are required to register at least five young players, so that we become a feeder league to PSL teams. In the event that one of our teams is promoted into the PSL, as Bulawayo Chiefs last season, that team should be competitive enough without necessarily going into the market to buy players,” he said.

He said clubs should take a leaf from Bantu Rovers, who used a number of Under-20 players when they won promotion to the topflight in 2016.

Rovers went on to register 10 Under-20 players in the Premiership last season, but were eventually relegated.

Most of their youngsters are being sought after by Premiership sides.

Former Young Warriors skipper Bukhosi Sibanda, who is now based in Cape Town, South Africa, turning out for First Division side Ubuntu FC, stocky striker Obriel Chirinda, now with Chicken Inn, 18-year-old defender Shadreck Nyahwa, attacking midfielder Nyasha Garayi (18), Thabo Lunga, now with Highlanders, Kudzai Dzingwe (18), striker McCarthy Dube (18), who is now with Talen Vision as well as Munyaradzi Chitambwe (20), who has since joined Highlanders, were all part of the Bantu Rovers’ set up.

In the Premiership last season, Rovers also had the audacity to field 15-year-old midfielder Sibusiso Moyo when they played Highlanders and How Mine.

Rovers are credited with giving international stars Marvelous Nakamba and Kuda Mahachi Premiership experience when they were 16-year-olds. Nakamba now plays in Belgium, while Mahachi is turning out for Golden Arrows in South Africa.

The Moyo twins, Elvis and Kevin, who have established themselves as vital cogs at FC Platinum and Nqobizitha Masuku, who has found a new base at Zambia’s cash-flush BuildCon FC, are some of the players that were given a Premiership run by Rovers while they were Under-20.

“Teams must follow the Bantu Rovers concept, as they were not shy to field juniors during their Division One and Premier Soccer League campaigns. We understand that clubs, especially coaches, are under pressure for instant results, hence their stance to field and recycle old horses, but there is need to give youngsters game time and develop their talents,” Mandaza said.

@ZililoR